Gender Stereotypes Abound

Hubby and I were out on a date (by which I mean, shopping for baby when we finally get a chance to be by ourselves), when we stumbled across this set of books.

At first, I was puzzled.

Surely these couldn't be that bad. Surely, if I purchased one for Bean, she could read them and not be affected by the apparently rampant gender stereotypes.  

But as we proceeded to read through each 'book', my puzzlement quickly morphed into disgust.

Were they really asking the kids in the overtly girly book to smile and shout like princesses and cheerleaders, while asking the boys to shout and count like knights and astronauts?

Is this what little girls are still being told they should grow up to become?

By the time we had 'read' each 'book', my disgust had turned into a righteous fury!

How could this be allowed? WHY, was this allowed? Who was behind publishing such horrendous sexist drivel?

Unfortunately, they got worse. The kids reading the pink book with pictures of girls on every page, were told to pose, wave, smile and do any other manner of things involved with looks, while the blue book with pictures of obviously male characters on every page were told to do things which involved using either physical strength, or smarts (also, a horrendous sweeping generalisation)!

Yes. That really DOES say, POSE LIKE A MODEL.

 My husband had to literally (and I am not exagerating), force me to leave the store as I felt my blood beginning to boil.

These books, are everything that is wrong with the world.